Canon characters
Shall Machines Sunder the River by Devi_Lacroix
One does not become a terrorist overnight. Or rather: one does, in their heart, but it takes time for their hands to callous with the knowledge.
I am better at it than any good and well-habituated person ought to be, to a degree that would appall Eurydice but leave Recadat unfazed. But then again, Recadat was a true believer—in justice, in truth, in doing the right thing—and Eurydice had a sardonic bent that fit nicely with the world-weariness that inflected my world view. Perhaps, in death as in life, I have continued to misunderstand them.
An alternate universe that takes place after Now Will Machines Hollow the Beast and which pre-empts the events of Shall Machines Divide the Earth, detailing what might have happened if Thannarat’s life had gone… very differently, and been more devastatingly tragic. Author patreon. Also, check out her original fiction; Nemesis is my favorite.
Don’t Look Back by lamianoble
As the Admiral’s projection faded, Krissana cleared her throat. “Did she sound mad to you?”
Orfea took a breath before responding. “She doesn’t need to sound mad. Anyone with the slightest awareness of our operations would know she’d be furious at these results.”
A short about Krissana and Orfea pre-And Shall Machines Surrender, after one of their missions under the Amaryllis.
Shall the Tiger Sunder the Earth by Lt_SciBrat
The assailants were smaller in number—technically, outnumbered, though that is an odd word to use for an invading force that sears through an astonished juggernaut with laser guided reckless abandon, routs them with bestial savagery directed by clockwork precision, even if it is technically correct. You would not say a hot knife is outnumbered by the butter.
Another AU: what would have happened if Recadat had won in Shall Machines Divide the Earth and used her wish to liberate Ayothaya? I really love the bleakness and speculation that went into what Recadat would become if her corruption by Chun Hyang’s Glaive reaches its logical conclusion, as well as the prose. She also wrote a werewolf Anoushka fanfic which is fantastic and oh so sexy, and a really sad far future fanfic about the perils of an AI loving a human.
If you’d like to show the author appreciation, she has a Ko-Fi.
The Exegesis of Wonsul by VyriaDurav
But my lady…Iris…had been broken by grief long ago and was prone to confusing the events of the present with those of the past. My awareness was new, strange, but I could still pull upon the records of my time asleep and knew that indulging her was necessary.
A story exploring the background (and burgeoning sense of gender) of the AI Wonsul’s Exegesis. I really adore it, it’s both sweet and sad and I can’t wait to see where the author takes the idea. Her original fiction can be found here.
No Worlds Left To Conquer by Zyzzyva1936
Numadesi didn’t need to be told twice – didn’t need to be told once, but she loved waiting for that snap in her wife’s voice. She set to Anoushka’s pants. Anoushka took her own shirt off. There was a point to foreplay, and teasing, and Numadesi being made to do everything precisely because she could be made to do everything, but Numadesi knew her wife too, and had been working her as hard as any human knew how, and by now Anoushka’s nipples were nearly as hard as the composite fiber ribcage beneath them. She wasn’t going to wait.
An AU, this time with the speculation of: what if Benzaiten in Autumn is a literal puppet master? This is NSFW. It is erotic mind control. It’s also really, really hot and good. What can I say, my tastes are wide-ranging. You can find the author’s original fiction here.
Columbian Bargaining by warisaracket
I played the part of the diplomat well. I had been conditioned, trained, since the age of four years old with the highest degree of operant conditioning the Columbian Guard mustered. I had only been allowed to know what sex was when I turned sixteen. I could control my every expression, my face a perfectly impassive mask. Not even the sight, down one corridor, of a woman with an enormous… organ… between her legs, possibly a prosthesis, possibly fleshly, not even the sight of her performing a sensual act with some other woman could persuade me to quirk an eyebrow unwillingly.
A story where Numadesi dips into very gentle mind control, satisfying her penchant for teaching virgins all about sensuality.
Original characters
And Shall Machines Chase the Sun by crownedserpent
Samara looks at her hands, dark and smooth with youth, but her nails glow a soft oceanic blue. She blinks and swears she can see the lightspeed path of electricity that now chases the circuitry of her veins. The ichor of the machines flows within her, and she feels life returning to her, smoldering and eternal.
A story about a woman who’s just merged with an AI to become a freshly minted haruspex. The prose is absolutely gorgeous and I can’t wait to see where this goes, so if you think it sounds good too you can support the author (and read xer original fiction) here.
From Where Machines Count The Stars by Kalindlara
This time de Witte doesn’t laugh. She looks over at the grille that in ancient times would have separated her from a priest. Her expression is difficult to read—doubt? annoyance? pity?—and when she speaks, her voice is underlaid with firmness. “Xe. Not he or she or they or it. Xe. It’s a pronoun.”
“That doesn’t make sense. There are only two pronouns for people and one for corporate entities and institutions. Benzaiten must be one of those. Everyone must be one of those.” Indeed, the facet tasked with decoding the concept has returned only null values and corrupt data. It’s not fair. I need to understand this.
This story explores the dystopian Pax Americana (yes, it is exactly what it sounds like) and what the carceral hell in that would look like, as well as how the AI administering it might be suborned (and liberated) through a gender epiphany. Enjoyed it as much as I did? Here’s the author’s patreon.
Below Decks on the Seven of Divide by Jemma_Topaz
Certainly there was plenty of competition, rows and rows of women, bodies carefully adjusted — for fighting, true, but there was a lot of overlap there. Aria shook her head.
“Numadesi looked at me once,” said Aria, “I mean, properly. But she must have second thoughts; maybe she could tell … doesn’t matter.”
A cute, smutty look at the ranks and files on the Armada of Amaryllis. The author’s interactive fiction can be found here.
What Machines Abandon to Faith by Geckonator
I weep for my people. I rage for my world. Across light years of distance and hours of time, every second through which I fail them is another measure of wrath and retribution recorded in my ledger. But in the vastness of transference I have only darkness, can’t think clearly beyond the emotions I hold in the moment. But there it comes, my body drawing closer, closer, closer…
Another one with original characters! Epic in scope, touching on various powerful polities as well as Mandate and Amaryllis interests. I love the voice and the cadence. Follow the author on twitter here.
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